So while information about the past presidential election and upcoming inauguration only reaches me in small bits and pieces, you would think that Cameroonians themselves just elected Obama as president judging by the tremendously upbeat mood in this corner of the world. And the part I find most entertaining is the ensuing Obama naming craze. My first taste of this was seeing a “Garage de Barack Obama” in Maroua the other week, but my favorite by far is the “Coiffure (barbershop) de Barack Obama.” While winning the U.S. presidency is certainly a fantastic achievement, I don’t think the president-elect could have ever dreamt so big as to imagine his very name gracing the front of a barbershop in Northern Cameroon. I, for one, know exactly where I’ll be getting my expanding beard trimmed up the next time I’m in town. And not far down the street you’ll find a banner outside of an unrelated business that reads “Fan Club de Barack Obama.” As a peace corps volunteer I don’t believe my political neutrality would allow me to venture to such a gathering, but I’m tempted to search out the creator of said club to find out exactly what it is they do when the meetings come to order. I am intrigued. Do they have a special pledge they say before every gathering? Will goats be slaughtered in celebration on inauguration day? Are they responsible for the naming craze?

Despite my interest with the inner workings of the Fan Club de Barack Obama, the true reasoning behind my visit to Maroua this weekend is to do some research on a pest problem my counterpart is having on one of his millet fields that borders on the bush. Apparently a group of either wild pigs or cane rats (guinea pigs on steroids) enter his field every night, cut down swaths of millet stalks, eat the grain and leave nothing behind but open areas that strangely resemble crop circles. While our immediate solution to this problem is chemical pesticides, they are expensive and I feel as though I owe him a more subtle approach or at the least an alternative to gassing the local wildlife. And besides, if I could keep squirrels and rabbits out of my tomato/pepper garden in the urban jungle that is Arlington, what could possibly be so difficult about driving wild beasts back into the African bush? And if the pesticides don’t work one can always camp out at night with machetes. It may be a bit difficult to get supplies to make S’mores though.

Unfortunately my time at the cyber café is a bit short today as I've been laid up with yet another stomach bug this weekend; big shocker. And I was actually starting to put some weight back on! While writing this entry it occurred to me that sharing other cultures with Americans is one of the three goals of Peace Corps. I don’t think my ramblings about presidential fan clubs and hungry giant rats has done much to fulfill that goal today, so I’ve put a new poll/trivia question at the top right hand side of the page. So when I learn any new and interesting facts about my new home, you can too! And then at your next dinner function or happy hour you can thoroughly impress everyone with your extensive knowledge of the Sahelian region of Cameroon, and you will undoubtedly be the life of the party. So let’s start off this week with a straightforward historical question about the lovely town of Bogo. Where does the name “Bogo” actually come from? I will leave you to ponder.